It’s got everything you could want: nice graphics, spot on control, solid play mechanics, and it’s loads of fun to play. It’s nice to have a fighting game that requires some real strategy. It’s a welcome change from the current trend of button masher fighting games that Capcom’s “Vs.” series has spawned. If you’re looking for a fun new game to play on your Dreamcast, you need not look further than Fatal Fury: Mark of the Wolves.

It's ironic that one of the last Dreamcast games happens to be from SNK, a company that recently announced it would be going out of the video game business. Two companies that have been favored by hardcore enthusiasts everywhere, drastically changing - in SNK's case, disappearing - with the times. Some may comment that this is definitely a sign that hardcore gaming is dead while others, the greater majority, welcome this "changing of the guard"... the shift of old-school traditional games to this brave new world of 3D visuals and "mainstream" gaming. Whatever the case may be, those who still cling to their 2D ways, still remember the first time they saw Terry Bogard pull of his Power Geyser, and still trying to find some life to breath into the last Sega console, Fatal Fury: Mark Of The Wolves should not be passed up.

Mark of the Wolves for the Dreamcast could be described as a doubly nostalgic game--it's a port of one of SNK's last great NeoGeo games and is the last console port that SNK ever did. It's also one of the last great games for the Sega Dreamcast console, since the console itself will be discontinued soon. Considering all the newfangled 3D games that feature advanced graphical technology, it might not seem surprising that 2D games like this seem rarer and rarer these days. But if you own a Dreamcast and have any interest at all in 2D fighting games, you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy of Mark of the Wolves.

It's rather sad to see an SNK game released after the imminent demise, but with various rumors flying that they may be resurfacing, perhaps this is just a teaser of a new beginning for one of the only companies that really stayed dedicated to its fans. Even now, they've left their Mark on the Dreamcast with a great fighter.

Mark of the Wolves is good, and highly recommended, just be aware what you're getting yourself into before you blame me for being disappointed. It's not the best of the new technology, but then, it was never trying to be, and at least succeeds at that!

No question about it, this is some solid 2D fighting action, even if it does look old. There's also plenty of humor and some impressive artwork you can open up. I just wish the game didn't constantly ask if I want to save.